Cristiano Ronaldo benched for World Cup match against Switzerland

Cristiano Ronaldo isn't in the starting lineup for Portugal's match against Switzerland on Tuesday in the round of 16 of the World Cup.

The move came a day after his coach expressed frustration about his team captain's attitude in the last game. Gonçalo Ramos, who plays for Portuguese club Benfica, is starting in Ronaldo's place at Lusail Stadium.

Ronaldo showed obvious displeasure at being removed from the game against South Korea on Friday.

The 37-year-old striker opened the tournament with a goal against Ghana to become the first player to score in five different World Cups. But he was ineffective in Portugal’s final two games of group play and was pulled midway through the second half of a 2-1 loss to South Korea.

Ronaldo’s body language indicated the superstar was annoyed at being taken out of the game — something Portugal coach Fernando Santos remained silent about for nearly three days.

Finally in his Monday news conference, Santos conceded Ronaldo’s attitude in the game against South Korea was the one distraction — of many — that had pushed him too far.

Before Portugal's first match of the World Cup, Ronaldo cut ties with Manchester United and is reportedly being wooed by a Saudi Arabian team with the promise of an exorbitant paycheck, and a poll in Portugal showed that fans in his home country wanted the superstar dropped from the lineup.

“I didn’t like it, not at all. I really didn’t like it,” Santos said Monday of Ronaldo’s poor attitude at being taken out of the game against South Korea. “We fixed that in-house and that’s it.”

Portugal defender Rúben Dias, meanwhile, pleaded with Portuguese media to help “create unity” in the camp instead of division. It was Portuguese daily O Bola’s poll that showed fans at home had tired of Ronaldo and preferred he didn’t play against Switzerland.

Lionel Messi, Ronaldo’s greatest rival over the years, has scored three goals so far in this World Cup and helped Argentina reach the quarter-finals. Messi has nine career World Cup goals, and like Ronaldo, has never won the tournament.